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| Almonte General Hospital |
| Redevelopment Project was focus of 2006-07 at AGH/FVM |
| Date : - 07/06/2007 |
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Construction on the Almonte General Hospital/Fairview Manor (AGH/FVM) Redevelopment Project was the focus of another successful year at the Hospital and Manor.
“Two years ago we launched the Quality Care For Life Campaign to raise funds for the Redevelopment Project,” AGH/FVM Board Chair Bryn Matthews said at the organization’s 46th Annual General Meeting on June 4, 2007. “Today, the new Fairview Manor is finished, the new Emergency Department has just opened, and we expect to complete the Hospital portion of the Project by the end of this year.”
While construction on the $29-million Project has caused some disruptions, Matthews said the Hospital and Manor have continued to provide outstanding care, thanks to the hard work and co-operation of patients, residents, volunteers, visitors, management and staff.
A highlight of the year was the completion of the new 112-bed Fairview Manor, which opened to residents in April. “Feedback has been very positive, and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term care is so impressed by the facility that they are advising other communities to come and see what we’ve done here.”
Matthews noted that the Quality Care For Life Campaign has so far raised more than $3.7 million of its $4-million goal. “The Hospital/Manor Foundation has worked very hard to reach this point and will continue to work hard to raise the remaining $300,000 and funds for ongoing needs, including equipment,” he added.
Other 2006-07 highlights cited by Matthews include the July 2006 provincial Hospital Report Card, which gave AGH the highest rating among 93 Ontario hospitals for patient satisfaction with the responsiveness of its acute care services and with the consideration they were shown while at the Hospital. The Report Card also gave AGH high ratings on nine financial indicators that measure financial viability, liquidity, efficiency and the use of human resources.
“These are spectacular results and are consistent with our ratings over the past several years,” Matthews said. “I’d like to congratulate the Hospital’s management team, doctors, nurses, health-care workers, administration, support staff and volunteers. Our terrific results are the product of your talent and hard work.”
AGH/FVM Executive Director Ray Timmons told the meeting that the organization continues to be in a strong financial position. Noting that the opening of the new Fairview Manor marks the end of an 11-year journey, Timmons thanked everyone associated with the Redevelopment Project for their “outstanding support and assistance.”
Timmons said the AGH/FVM Board is considering a number of options for the old Fairview Manor building, including using the upper floor to provide retirement or assisted living housing or to provide accommodation for area patients awaiting admission to long-term care homes. “We are investigating the possibility of using the lower floor for doctors’ offices,” he added. “Having adequate space for physicians is absolutely crucial to our ability to recruit new doctors to our community and retain the ones already here.”
Another major feature of the Redevelopment Project is the expansion of the Diagnostic Imaging Department, including new X-ray equipment worth $450,000 and a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) worth $250,000. “PACS, which will be installed by September, is the latest technology for the storage, retrieval, distribution and presentation of radiology images,” Timmons explained. “It produces an electronic image that can be read by radiologists at the Ottawa Hospital and elsewhere.”
The number of acute-care patient days at AGH in 2006-07 was 5,788, a drop of 66 days from the previous year. The number of complex continuing care days declined by 108 to 9,125. Visits to the Emergency Department in 2006-07 rose by more than five per cent and the number of births rose by 35 per cent, from 242 in 2005-06 to 326 in 2006-07.
Timmons said the Hospital continues to have a positive partnership with the County of Lanark on the management of the Lanark County Ambulance Service. Emergency Response Vehicle patrol of Lanark Highlands recently expanded to 24/7 coverage from the previous 8 a.m.-to-4 p.m., Monday-to-Friday coverage. A new eight-hour shift covering the northern part of the County, including Mississippi Mills, Beckwith and Carleton Place is being implemented and plans are being developed to build a new ambulance base for Lanark Highlands.
Another change at the Hospital over the past year was the move to private outpatient lab services, which are now located in the old Fairview Manor. Timmons said AGH had been one of very few hospitals still funding its own lab services instead of having the province fund them. “This move means we are able to reallocate approximately $225,000 previously spent on lab services to other programs provided by the Hospital,” he said.
Timmons said that challenges for the coming year include recruiting and retaining doctors and other health-care staff, financial resources, workload issues and working with the Champlain Local Health Integration Network (LHIN), which has the mandate to plan, co-ordinate, manage and fund care at the local level.
The Champlain LHIN has identified six strategic directions: Access; Primary Health Services; Chronic Disease Prevention and Management; Mental Health; Elderly Care with Complex and Chronic Conditions; and E-Health. “I believe that our Hospital has an important role within the LHIN,” Timmons said.
Susan Muston, representing the AGH/FVM Auxiliary, told the meeting that the organization has 228 volunteers. “Amazingly, the number of volunteer hours went up by 3,000, from 11,000 in 2005-06 to 14,000 in 2006-07,” she said, adding that the AGH and FVM auxiliaries merged into one body over the past year.
Matthews and Timmons thanked everyone who has contributed to the success of the Hospital and Manor, including the medical staff, nursing staff, support staff, volunteers and members of the Hospital and Foundation boards.
Board members also thanked Matthews, who completed his two-year term as Board Chair at the meeting. He remains on the Board as Past Chair. The new Board Chair is Mark Attley.
At the meeting, the Board approved the nomination of Dorothy Finner, Jeri Lunney and Dr. Tom Todd to serve on the Board for terms of three years each. Completing two-year terms are Duncan Abbot, Dr. Louise Heslop and Paul Virgin. Completing one-year terms are Mark Attley, David Martin and Bryn Matthews. The Chief of Staff is Dr. Graeme McKillop and the President of the Medical Staff is Dr. Anne Oldfield. Susan Muston represents the Auxiliary and the municipal representatives are Donna Brown (Almonte Ward), Carol Bean (Pakenham Ward), Jim Lowry (Ramsay Ward), Shad Qadri (City of Ottawa) and Bruce Horlin (Lanark Highlands Township). Bean is the Vice-Chair of the Board and the Chair of the Management Committee. Dr. Todd chairs the Finance/Audit Committee. |
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| Reference : - www.almontegeneral.com |
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